imaged retrieved on January 14, 2014 from http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/programs/youth-outreach/peace-heroes/img/jaddams.jpg
Hello, my name is Jane Addams. I was born on September 6, 1860 in the town of Cedarville, Illinois. My father was a friend of President Abraham Lincoln who addressed him fondly as his "Dear Double D-'ed Addams".
In 1881 I graduated from the Rockfield Female Seminary as valedictorian, but i didn't get credit for my bachelor's degree until my seminary was accredited as Rockford College for Women the following year (it was changed again to Rockford University in 1847). Following this I still craved more education and being a woman of privilege I was able to study medicine for 6 years before my health took a negative turn and I had to spend time in the hospital.
I spent the next chunk of my life travelling through Europe, both alone and with my good friend and colleague Ellen G. Starr, and focusing on my independent work before I returned to Chicago with Ellen and the idea of a philanthropic house to improve the conditions of the city. Ellen and I shared our ideas with the community, raised money for the city, took care of both children and the sick, and listened to the outcries of the city's occupants for better conditions. We simply wanted our community house to be a shining light in the city to raise morale and help those in need and our house became known as the "Hull-House" based upon the builder's name, Charles Hull. We were an instant success and as soon as our second year of opening we had an average weekly housing rate of 2,000 people with activities benefiting children as young (or younger) than kindergarten, older children or adolescents, and adults. We had classes and clubs and, as time went on, Hull-House grew which allowed us to add a second public kitchen, an arts gallery, an employment bureau, and many other fantastic community-benefiting additions.
Ellen and I became very well known through our Hull-House and I was appointed to Chicago's Board of Education in 1905 and I quickly rose to chairman of the School Management Committee. I then became even more successful and made my place as the first woman president of the National Conference of Charities and Corrections. These accomplishments never distracted me from my beloved city of Chicago and I took up various jobs in an attempt to ever-further the success and cleanliness of the city.
I was always very adamant on women's rights. I never understood why women didn't have the right to vote, but I made sure to let women know that they should always make their voices and opinions be heard. I wanted women to understand that, not only are their opinions valid, but that they should create goals and aspirations for themselves to achieve outside of what the world of men said was "appropriate" or "feminine".
I was always very insistent on the idea that war is bad. I have always hated war and I decided it was time to start speaking out against it, especially with America's entry into the war in Europe (later known as World War I). I began speaking and lecturing at the University of Wisconsin and I later organized my thoughts and ideals into a book titled Newer Ideals of Peace. After this I still was not satisfied that I had done all I could so I joined the Women's Peace Party and later helped to found the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom in which I was president until 1929, but remained honorary president until I died.
In-between my workings with these women's peace organizations I had become very outspoken about the war and this led me to be attacked in the media and I was, regrettably, released from the Daughter's of the American Revolution. I spent my time working with Herbert Hoover to send aid to the women and children of our "enemy" nations and I wrote another book in 1922 about my experiences with the project entitled Peace and Bread in Time of War.
In 1926 my health took a turn for the worse with a heart attack that left me very weak and I had to revisit the hospital several times in the last few years of my life. I was unfortunately in the hospital when I was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10, 1931 and I was unable to deliver a Nobel lecture due to specific instruction from my doctor. I died in 1935, three days after it was determined I had cancer.
Image retrieved on January 31, 2014 fromhttp://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9781290575881_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG
Image retrieved on January 31, 2014 from http://img1.imagesbn.com/p/9781151093196_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG
Here is a photograph of the Hull-House that I worked in with Ellen Starr.
Image retrieved on January 16, 2013 from http://www.socialwelfarehistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/hullhouse1.jpg
Here is another picture of me later on in life.
Image retrieved on January 16, 2014 from /1931/addams.jpg
In 1881 I graduated from the Rockfield Female Seminary as valedictorian, but i didn't get credit for my bachelor's degree until my seminary was accredited as Rockford College for Women the following year (it was changed again to Rockford University in 1847). Following this I still craved more education and being a woman of privilege I was able to study medicine for 6 years before my health took a negative turn and I had to spend time in the hospital.
I spent the next chunk of my life travelling through Europe, both alone and with my good friend and colleague Ellen G. Starr, and focusing on my independent work before I returned to Chicago with Ellen and the idea of a philanthropic house to improve the conditions of the city. Ellen and I shared our ideas with the community, raised money for the city, took care of both children and the sick, and listened to the outcries of the city's occupants for better conditions. We simply wanted our community house to be a shining light in the city to raise morale and help those in need and our house became known as the "Hull-House" based upon the builder's name, Charles Hull. We were an instant success and as soon as our second year of opening we had an average weekly housing rate of 2,000 people with activities benefiting children as young (or younger) than kindergarten, older children or adolescents, and adults. We had classes and clubs and, as time went on, Hull-House grew which allowed us to add a second public kitchen, an arts gallery, an employment bureau, and many other fantastic community-benefiting additions.
Ellen and I became very well known through our Hull-House and I was appointed to Chicago's Board of Education in 1905 and I quickly rose to chairman of the School Management Committee. I then became even more successful and made my place as the first woman president of the National Conference of Charities and Corrections. These accomplishments never distracted me from my beloved city of Chicago and I took up various jobs in an attempt to ever-further the success and cleanliness of the city.
I was always very adamant on women's rights. I never understood why women didn't have the right to vote, but I made sure to let women know that they should always make their voices and opinions be heard. I wanted women to understand that, not only are their opinions valid, but that they should create goals and aspirations for themselves to achieve outside of what the world of men said was "appropriate" or "feminine".
I was always very insistent on the idea that war is bad. I have always hated war and I decided it was time to start speaking out against it, especially with America's entry into the war in Europe (later known as World War I). I began speaking and lecturing at the University of Wisconsin and I later organized my thoughts and ideals into a book titled Newer Ideals of Peace. After this I still was not satisfied that I had done all I could so I joined the Women's Peace Party and later helped to found the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom in which I was president until 1929, but remained honorary president until I died.
In-between my workings with these women's peace organizations I had become very outspoken about the war and this led me to be attacked in the media and I was, regrettably, released from the Daughter's of the American Revolution. I spent my time working with Herbert Hoover to send aid to the women and children of our "enemy" nations and I wrote another book in 1922 about my experiences with the project entitled Peace and Bread in Time of War.
In 1926 my health took a turn for the worse with a heart attack that left me very weak and I had to revisit the hospital several times in the last few years of my life. I was unfortunately in the hospital when I was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10, 1931 and I was unable to deliver a Nobel lecture due to specific instruction from my doctor. I died in 1935, three days after it was determined I had cancer.
Here is a photograph of the Hull-House that I worked in with Ellen Starr.
Here is another picture of me later on in life.
Here are two links to biographies that people have been generous enough to write about me. I particularly enjoy the Nobel prize website because they really got the facts of my life.
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1931/addams-bio.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Addams
Here is my personal word image that I created to show you more about me!!
http://www.tagxedo.com/artful/a1706c6851694a6d